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Food Safety Matters

Food Safety Matters

By: Food Safety Magazine
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Food Safety Matters is a podcast for food safety professionals hosted by the Food Safety Magazine editorial team – the leading media brand in food safety for over 20 years. Each episode will feature a conversation with a food safety professional sharing their experiences and insights into the important job of safeguarding the world's food supply.2025 Food Safety Magazine Art Food & Wine Natural History Nature & Ecology Science
Episodes
  • Live from the 2026 Food Safety Summit—Part 1

    Live from the 2026 Food Safety Summit—Part 1
    May 19 2026

    To get a taste of the discussions that were happening at the 2026 Food Safety Summit, we spoke face-to-face with Jeremy Zenlea, M.B.A., Vice President and Head of Health and Safety for EG America and Laurie Farmer, Director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Office of Retail Food Protection; David Clifford, M.B.A., Director of Food Safety at Nestlé USA and Sara Mortimore, M.Sc., Founder of Sara Mortimore LLC and formerly Vice President for Food Safety at Walmart; Frank Curto, Ph.D., Vice President of Operations at Ecowize North America; and Drew McDonald, Senior Vice President of Quality, Food Safety, and Regulatory Affairs for Taylor Fresh Foods and Conrad Choiniere, Ph.D., Director of FDA's Office of Microbiological Food Safety.

    In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak with:

    • Mr. Zenlea and Ms. Farmer about issues related to retail/foodservice food safety, including the intersection of sanitation and culture, FDA's Comprehensive Employee Health Toolkit, and utilizing employee health policies to reduce norovirus risk [3:06]
    • Mr. Clifford and Ms. Mortimore about the process and benefits of digitalizing Hazards Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) programs [21:46]
    • Dr. Curto about building an "audit-ready everyday" food safety culture [42:31]
    • Mr. McDonald and Dr. Choiniere about data sharing within organizations and across sectors. [1:00:04]

    Sponsored by: Ecowize

    We Want to Hear from You!

    Please send us your questions and suggestions to podcast@food-safety.com
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    1 hr and 27 mins
  • Ep. 217. Larry Keener: Learnings From an Award-Winning Career in Food Safety

    Ep. 217. Larry Keener: Learnings From an Award-Winning Career in Food Safety
    May 12 2026
    Larry Keener, CFS, PA is President and CEO of International Product Safety Consultants Inc. and an internationally regarded microbiologist and process authority in the food industry. His areas of expertise range from applied food microbiology to the development and application of novel preservation technologies. Mr. Keener is a 2013 Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a Board Certified Food Scientist by the International Food Science Certification Commission, and a 2018 recipient of an International Union of Food Science and Technology's (IUFoST's) lifetime achievement award for his work in microbiology and food safety. He is also the recipient of Food Safety Magazine's 2026 Distinguished Service Award. He is a past president of IFT's Nonthermal Processing Division and a two-term past president of Tuskegee University's Food and Nutrition Sciences Advisory Board. He is also a past co-chair and founding member of the Global Harmonization Initiative (GHI). Additionally, Mr. Keener is a 2022 inductee to the George Washington Carver Society and has received numerous other awards and honors. In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak with Larry [40:37] about: The beginnings of his career in food safety and formative experiences that shaped his understanding of the field and his future workImportant contributions Larry has made to the food safety field, and concepts his research and publications have helped advanceThe advantages of food safety professionals and scientists sharing knowledge and engaging in conversations, such as those facilitated by Food Safety MagazineWhich risk assessment, regulatory, and technological developments have made the biggest difference in improving food safety outcomes over the yearsThe underappreciation of food irradiation as a viable food safety intervention, which Larry will discuss during his session at the 2026 Food Safety Summit, titled, "Food Irradiation Today: What's Allowed, Where, and Why?"Advice for early-career food safety professionals to "learn the business" and drive value. News and Resources News USDA Announces Reorganization of Food Safety and Inspection Service [4:24] Federal Preemption of State Food Safety Laws Debated During Congressional Hearing [10:42]Congress to Hold Legislative Hearing on 28 Active Bills Related to Food Safety, FDA FRESH Act Aims to Preempt State Food Safety Laws, Proposes Controversial GRAS Reforms Bill Reintroduced to Allow FDA to Share Information with State Agencies During Foodborne Illness Outbreaks FDA Testing Shows U.S. Infant Formula is Safe, with Undetectable or Very Low Chemical Contamination [23:32] WHO Estimates a $46 Return for Every $1 Investment in National Foodborne Disease Surveillance [29:42] Study Finds Cold Plasma Treatment Reduces Peanut Allergenicity [36:29] Resources Larry Keener to be Honored with Food Safety Magazine's 2026 Distinguished Service Award We Want to Hear from You! Please send us your questions and suggestions to podcast@food-safety.com
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    1 hr and 16 mins
  • Apeel Sciences: Helping Growers and Suppliers Build the Future of Food

    Apeel Sciences: Helping Growers and Suppliers Build the Future of Food
    Apr 30 2026

    Jenny Du, Ph.D. is Co-Founder of Apeel Sciences, a post-harvest intelligence and solutions company helping suppliers and retailers deliver fresh, healthier, and simply better produce at scale—using plant-based materials science to close the gap between what consumers expect from fresh produce and what the supply chain is able to deliver. Jenny earned her bachelor's degree in engineering chemistry and her Ph.D. in chemistry from Queen's University in Ontario, Canada, where she was awarded an Alexander Graham Bell Canada Graduate Scholarship. She then joined the University of California, Santa Barbara as a postdoctoral researcher in chemistry, where she met co-founders James Rogers and Lou Perez. In 2013, the three founded Apeel in a garage in Goleta, California. Today, Apeel has earned regulatory clearances and operates in several markets worldwide, including in the U.S. and in Europe. Jenny was named to Inc.'s 2021 Top Female Founders 100 list and named one of TED's Top 10 most-watched speakers of the year following her 2025 talk, "The Science of Making Fruits and Veggies Last Longer."

    In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak with Jenny [1:51] about:

    • Her journey from being a postdoctoral chemistry researcher to co-founding Apeel Sciences
    • The science behind Apeel's clean, edible produce coating and how it differs from traditional products applied to produce post-harvest
    • Apeel's evaluation and approvals by FDA, EFSA, and regulators in more than 40 countries
    • How Apeel disrupts the existing $11 billion dollar post-harvest industry and what happens to produce between the field and retail
    • The implications of Apeel on food safety standards and protocols for post-harvest treatment and microbial control
    • Apeel's response to industry resistance and disinformation
    • The broader consumer movement demanding transparency about food production and ingredients, and where Apeel fits into this conversation.

    Resources

    Follow Apeel Sciences on Substack!

    Sponsored by:

    Apeel Sciences

    We Want to Hear from You!

    Please send us your questions and suggestions to podcast@food-safety.com.
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    31 mins
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